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Sunday, May 24, 2009

Last week I had the pleasure of meeting Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks at a New York luncheon celebrating the publication of the new Koren Sacks Siddur (link). R. Shaul Robinson of Lincoln Square Synagogue arranged for me to have a few words with the Chief Rabbi, who said that he has read this blog on occasion(!). He also inscribed my copy of the new siddur.

Let's talk about this siddur. You might recall my review of the British version of the siddur (link). The new Koren-Sacks siddur is by far the best siddur I have ever used and has set a new standard in scholarship, usability and esthetics. This edition has all the benefits of the British siddur with many additional features. These include:

Click here to read moreLet's talk about this siddur. You might recall my review of the British version of the siddur (link). The new Koren-Sacks siddur is by far the best siddur I have ever used and has set a new standard in scholarship, usability and esthetics. This edition has all the benefits of the British siddur with many additional features. These include:

All the parts of the service that I complained were "missing," e.g. full korbanos.

Mi-she-beirakh blessings that are commonly said in the US, including those for the US government and US army.

Excellent section of laws, including a month-by-month lu'ach a la Ezras Torah.

Even more commentary from the Chief Rabbi than the British edition.

Vowelization of the Hebrew is based on the Koren text, which is grammatically precise but more familiar than the British version, which was based on the Baer siddur.

And, of course, there is the unique typesetting. Koren considers typesetting to be an art, and you can tell. I'm not the most esthetically conscious person, so I'm sure that much of this is lost on me. Nevertheless, I still see the beauty in how they arranged the page. It isn't only beauty but the way they set the page adds to your prayers. The crisp Hebrew text is in bite-size portions to help you focus on the meaning of the words.

And the Hebrew and English are reversed, with the Hebrew pages on the left and the English on the right. It took me about two minutes to get used to it but now I'm convinced that this is the way it should always be. Your eyes naturally land on the Hebrew first so you save a little time but, more importantly, it just feels natural.

If you are going to buy it online, please buy it from this link because I get a commission from this sale: link. I strongly recommend the siddur and already have two copies of my own.

Here's a run-down of reviews in the media and a video about the siddur by Rabbi Sacks. You can also get a good preview of the siddur on the Koren website: link.